


From Soldier to Soldier

by aerum (CatReginae)



Series: Aerum's LinkedUniverse Oneshots [2]
Category: Linked Universe - Fandom, LinkedUniverse - Fandom, The Legend of Zelda & Related Fandoms
Genre: Based on a Tumblr Post, Crossover, Gen, Just what we love, Legend of Zelda AU, Linked Universe, LinkedUniverse, More angst, No Beta, Of the Wild Variety, Proofread a bit more this time
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-02-06
Updated: 2019-02-06
Packaged: 2019-10-23 05:25:22
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,446
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17677232
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CatReginae/pseuds/aerum
Summary: When Wild becomes upset about the fate of the Hylian Knights, which he could only vaguely remember, it's up the other soldier in the group to try and talk to him.





	From Soldier to Soldier

**Author's Note:**

> Based on this post [on Tumblr](https://linkeduniverse.tumblr.com/post/171252517659/jojo56830-based-on-these-guys-here-we-have) because elaborating on Jojo's doodles is my jam, apparently. This is based off of the @LinkedUniverse over on tumblr, which is made by @jojo56830, so if you checked it out already, I highly recommend doing so!

By the time they managed to set up camp for the evening, it was already dark out, so the general questions and comparisons regarding other adventures took place long after Time left for the first patrol and Sky already dozed off, with Wind not too far behind him. The youngest of them was already wrapped up in his blankets, but he was still seemed alert enough to listen. That left the rest of them sitting around the campfire as 'Rule struck up conversations about things that bothered him during his adventures. 

“It felt like I couldn't take two steps without getting ambushed,” 'Rule mumbled, leaning back against the log he was sitting on, keeping his hands planted on the log to balance himself. “It was a pain trying to get somewhere you but have to stop to fight a monster. It happened so often!” 

Captain could understand that feeling. It felt like he couldn't do anything without getting news of a fort being attacked, or a captain who needed help, or that their base was being ambushed and hardly anybody seemed to be doing a damn thing about it. He felt like he was on his own sometimes. “The knights I knew tried their best, but I still had to run all over the battlefield because they couldn't defend a fort. It felt like I couldn't catch my breath.” 

“Sounds better than than the knights I knew. They were all cowards. They were all so excited about an escort mission until they realized that there would be monsters on the way. It was the fastest I've ever seen a room clear,” Twilight muttered, resting his head on a fist as he sighed. Wild shot a look in his direction, but Twilight didn't seem to notice. 

“Hey, at least they didn't attack you like the ones I knew,” Legends scoffed, waving a hand dismissively. “All because they couldn't resist simple mind magic, or because they're so loyal to a face they barely know they can't tell when something is wrong. They're all useless.”

Wild hid a frown behind his hand. Neither Legends or Twilight seemed to notice. 

“I was attacked by soldiers too, but I don't hold it against them,” Four added with a frown. “Is it really their fault if it's mind magic? Or that they are being manipulated into thinking they're just following orders?” 

He rolled his eyes. “If your soldiers are better people, then great, and that's not a joke. It's not universal experience though.”

The conversation died after that. Usually, silence didn't bother them, but this time, it felt heavy. It hung uncomfortably in the air, leaving them to awkwardly look at each other rather than enjoy the peace the silence brought. Wind fell asleep. More time passed, and eventually, Wild excused himself and got up, walking away from their camp. Twilight frowned as they exchanged glances at each other. 

“We did it again,” Legends mumbled, rolling his eyes. “He's so sensitive.” 

Twilight shot Legends a dirty look. “Maybe I should go after him.” 

“I'll go. I think I have an idea of what's upsetting him,” Captain said as he jumped to his feet. He was sure that Twilight wouldn't have been a bad choice, since he was the one to wake and comfort Wild after a nightmare, but Captain felt like he had an edge that nobody else had, giving their most recent conversation. He flashed them a smile. “You know, from one soldier to another.”

“Are you sure?” Twilight looked ready to dart after him, but Captain waved his hand. 

“Don't worry!” Captain flashed a smile. “I think I got it.” 

Wild wasn't too hard to find, sitting on the ground with his head resting on his arms, his knees drawn to his chest. Captain sat down beside him, and for a moment, there was nothing for either one of them to say. He was good at pumping people up for a battle and pushing them beyond what they thought they were capable of, but he wasn't often in a position where he had to comfort somebody. He needed a moment to think about his words. Wild didn't try to kick him out of his spot though, which Captain took to be a good sign. At least he wasn't upset with him.

“Are you upset about what the others said about the knights?” he asked. Wild nodded, then let his arms fall to his side. 

“Are you not?” 

“A little bit, but I can separate my knights from their knights.” It wasn't pleasant to listen to, how the knights of Hyrule somehow lost their way where some of his friends came from. He even saw it first hand a couple of times when his knights turned traitorous, but he decided to focus on the ones who remained loyal instead. Not that Captain was going to say any of that in front of Wild though, not when his lack of memories tended to make his mood swing. “This isn't about me though,” he added quickly. 

Wild let out a deep sigh, clutching his knees closer to his chest. “I know they weren't talking about the knights from my Hyrule, and it's just their experience, but it still bothers me,” Wild muttered with a frown. “The Hylian knights in my Hyrule don't even exist anymore. There are some people who take it upon themselves to protect a stable, or a single bridge, but the military? The Calamity wiped it out. I've seen the ruins of the citadel, and nobody could have survived that. It's much the same in Castletown. They died during the attack and it took me one hundred years to return the favour.” 

“You're defending the memories of people you don't even remember.” Captain said it mostly to himself, but it was still out loud, and Wild was close enough to hear it. 

Wild hung his head. “I should. I'm the reason why they died.” His voice cracked.

“Hold on, that's not true. Any soldier who was stationed at the citadel or Castletown knew that being there could one day result in their death, because that's the unfortunate part of the job. All soldiers accept that our next battle could be our last. Death is our reality.” He put his hand on Wild's shoulder. He jumped under his touch, but he relaxed a moment later. “You shouldn't burden yourself with that fact.” 

“But the civilians-” 

“Did you raise your sword against them?” Captain asked. Wild stiffened, so he squeezed the younger one's soldier. “Then it's not your fault. The only one who gets that blame is Ganon. Besides, no matter how long it took, you took it out in the end. They've been avenged.”

Silence settled once again. He didn't dare leave Wild alone while he strewed on his words, but Captain didn't have anything to add anyway. He kept his hand where it was. The silence wasn't a bad one, at least. Eventually, he felt Wild completely relax. He was sure that Wild would probably get upset about something like that again, blaming himself for something that wasn't his fault, but for now, he seemed to be in a better spot. He straightened out his legs, so Captain removed his hand. 

“I don't even remember much of being a soldier.”

“Now that you have us, I don't think you're missing much,” Captain said with a shrug. The fought together, slept together, eat together, and cared for each other. It was a similar relationship that he had with some of the soldiers. “And the training? I think it's better that you have the results without the memory. There's only so many times you can practice the same sword swing before you begin to lose your mind, especially if you already knew the sword swing from childhood.” 

For the first time since setting up camp, Wild cracked a smile. 

“How did you survive?”

“I'm persistent.” 

“Is that also how you survive being rejected by so many women?”

He mocked a gasp, putting a hand over his heart. “Sheesh, if you're feeling better, we'll just go back to camp. You didn't have to wound me like that.” Wild burst out laughing. Once he settled down, they both got up, and walked back to camp just in time to see the old man come back for a quick check in. He nodded at their return as Wild settled back into his spot. Twilight moved to sit beside him, but Captain couldn't hear the words coming out of Twilight's mouth. Captain took his spot again, exchanging a quick look with Time before he moved on. 

Time wanted a report. He could do that later though.

**Author's Note:**

> 'Rule's comments is based off my own experience of playing Adventure of Link. If you die for any reason at all, you have to walk all the way back to where you were, which is wonderful when you're constantly ambushed by enemies. I never arrive anywhere with full health. Maybe that's why I didn't finish that game.


End file.
